Chapter 11: The Tide Turns
An unconscious Jervaintus sails down the wave of souls as he is taken deeper in the Abyss. Lots of thoughts begin to gnaw at his mind once more. The focus of his thoughts has always been the same, it was all about Sirena. He regrets leaving her alone again and wanted to wake up now and escape this god forsaken place. He remembers the last moments he was in the living world, being dog piled by demons and a great explosion caused by Danimus.
At that same moment, the allied forces celebrate their victory against the Abyss lord of death and hold a feast at the Agnaum city of Pirhya. Sirena keeps to herself throughout the several day long celebration, waiting for Jervaintus to return to her. As she roams around the courtyard, she gets approached by General Durkins,
"Sirena, is it?" He asks.
"Yes. What do you need from me?" She turns to him.
"I'm just checking to make sure you're alright. I know you and Jervaintus are close." He consoles her.
"Yes, since we were children. You must be Durkins, right?" She says.
"Ah, yes. I was his mentor when he started in the army." He leans on the stone wall.
The two share a long conversation about their connection to Jervaintus and then return to the festivities with a newfound respect for each other,
"If he survived the Abyss once, he will do so again. He has the power of two of the three lords this time. For now, we must prepare the best we can until he returns." He reassures her.
Jervaintus wanders around lazily in the abyss. The realm is an emptier place since the last time he was here due to the recent battle but he knows it is a matter of time since it becomes busy once more. He remembers what Danimus told him before his demise, of the warning he gave. The third lord must be ready to strike him, anywhere any time.
"I'm sorry but what happened to you was funny." The spirit spooks him.
He grunts,
"Now you speak to me?" He groans in pain.
"You got piled on and exploded." She laughs.
"This place looks different since I was last dead…" He looks around.
The spirit composes herself and explains to Jervaintus that the realm was remade so that any future souls will have a harder time to escape. Jervaintus wanders for what seemed like hours, slaughtering any demons he comes across. He reaches a field of weapons that are scattered and set on the ground. Souls of fallen warriors wander around like lost lambs as they walk endlessly for all eternity.
"So, what is your plan?" The spirit asks him.
"Simple. Defeat the rulers of the abyss as soon as possible. Find Godfrey, and give him an ass kicking the echelons of history will remember for all time." He explains.
"And what of the girl you like?" She teases him.
"...And return to the living realm and help rebuild." He deflects her question.
"A shame that these souls cannot be challenged. I would love to test my mettle against these warriors of the past." He regrets.
He wanders and finally finds the gates of the abyss, the gatekeeper greets him. He tells the gatekeeper of the recent battle and the defeat of the lord of death. The gatekeeper sighs in relief,
"You just might be able to do it. I haven't felt this happy since that young fellow from centuries past said the same thing." The being recollects.
"Young fellow. Was he wearing holy white armor and can control fire?" Jervaintus asks.
"Yes, I believe so. Said he was on a quest to defeat the God of the Abyss." The gatekeeper tells him.
"Did you know what happened afterwards?" Jervaintus presses him.
"He was long gone after that. Why, did he win?" The giant bird's voice has a hint of relief.
"I've got so bad news for you, then." Jervaintus says.
He explains to the gatekeeper that Godfrey may have struck a deal with the other god as he was commanding a force of abyss demons that raided one of the towns in the kingdom of Agnaum. If the gatekeeper had a face, he would be expressing his shock right now.
"Mhmm, so the lad gave in." The gatekeeper grimaces.
"But what made him do it, I still wonder." Jervaintus leans on a solid pillar.
"Aren't you going to get out, now?" The gatekeeper leans over him.
"I forgot to pay you the soul last time I was alive, I thought you're gonna keep me here." Jervaintus says.
"Ah, that just to make it sound more convincing so I can tell the rulers. Besides, because of you, the powers that be that preside here are starting to crumble. You posses the powers of both lords of shadow and death." The gatekeeper explains to him.
"Do you know of the last lord?" He asks the being.
"You ask of Teramicus, Lord of Sorrow. Unfortunately, I have not seen him nor know what he is capable of. I only know him by name." The gatekeeper tells him.
"Something is wrong." The spirit tells Jervaintus.
He gets up and draws his sword,
"What do you mean?" He looks around.
The gatekeeper crumbles into a pile of bones and falls onto the ground. The gate and the walls connected to fades away from the field. The ground begins to distort. Jervaintus frantically looks around, trying to find the enemy.
"Be wary, boy and fight as if your life depended on it." The spirit advises him.
"You didn't need to tell me twice." He points his blade in front of him.
"Ah…so you are the one my brother warned me about…finally good to make your acquantance. Abyss Walker." The skull of the gatekeeper speaks to Jervaintus.
"His illusion magic is powerful." The spirit points out.
"You may have bested the other two in combat but soon you will find out that the true battlefield lies within the confines of your tiny mind." The skies of the abyss change.
Jervaintus feels a powerful, pulling sensation and he falls from the skies of the living realm. He turns around and sees the valley near the city of Pirhya. Another force pulls him to the direction to Jyus'Shin. He crashes into the church's bell tower and lands into the burnt debris. The whole event dazes him and nearly defeaned his ears. He scrambles to get back on his feet as he hears low grunting and snarls of the abyss demon nearly discovering his location.
He looks up and sees Godfrey standing before what remains of the altair in the cathedral. Jervaintus takes this chance,
"Hey! You disgraceful excuse of a demi-god!" He shouts at him.
Abyss demons emerge from the ruins almost immediately and surrounds him. Godfrey turns around and looks down upon him with an arrogant look on his face. Jervaintus can see something in his hand. Perhaps it could be some artifact of great power? He knows this is part of the illusion and yet he cannot ignore this possibility.
He is transported into the courtyards of Pirhya. He nearly loses his breath, which catches the attention of Sirena. She runs and tackles him into the ground as she embraces him tightly. His sensations betray him as he hugs her back, he knows that this is all in his head but can't help it as his heart decides for him. He looks to see Sirena is replaced by a growling abyss demon. He instinctively kicks it off of him. He kills the little bastard quickly and calls out to the spirit,
"Spirit! I need your guidance!" He attempts to summon her.
No answer.
"Answer me, god damn it!" He shouts.
The pulling sensation takes him to another place. A land of black earth and ashen skies, a warrior stands before him clad in nearly identical armor aside from the helmet which looks like a theatrical mask and his weapon, a long katana blade that easily closes the distance between him and the warrior. Jervaintus gets up and stares at the warrior, examining the little details. It isn't long until the warrior strikes first, covering themselves in a vengeance aura similar to Jervaintus. He is taken aback by this and gets slashed through the chest. He retaliates with a swift kick in the cut, and his sword through the warrior's throat. The warrior falls and their helmet pops off. The warrior is a woman, long grey hair now covered with blood. Jervaintus stands before the corpse and kneels. He turns the body around and her eyes share the same color as Jervaintus,
"Another...abyss walker?" He looks confused.
The demon lord stalks behind him, Jervaintus senses it and uses the powers he stole from death to summon multiple spikes from the ground and impales the demon. The demon is shocked by this as his blood rushes outside his mouth.
"You were quite the entertainer but now your power is mine." He says.
As the last lord lies dead, most of the abyss starts to crumble apart. The gatekeeper flies towards him,
"Get on, boy! We're getting out of here!" He commands him.
Jervaintus gets on and escapes out of the abyss. The lords have fallen and his quest is done...or is it?
As he returns to the living realm, he sees the newly rebuilt city of Jyus'Shin attacked once more. The gatekeeper and Jervaintus rush over to aid them.
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EchoHellion
EchoHellion UPDATE: The next THREE chapters will be published at the same time around next week to hype up the finale of this story. I had my laptop repaired and am currently resuming work on it as of this moment. Thanks for your patience!
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